Exodus 3:1-3
"Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his faher-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led the
flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. And the
angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked,
and, behold the bush burned with fire, and the bush ws not consumed."

In chapter two we saw Moses arrogant and ready for a fight. He killed an Egyptian when he saw
him abusing an Israelite and he chided two of his kinsmen for fighting with each other. God
needed Moses to become meek and humble, so He sent him into the desert to break his will.

Forty years had passed since Moses fled from Egypt. He surely now knew desert life inside out
and his proud attitude had definitely changed. He was finally ready to be used by God. But
first, God had to get his attention. So many times God must do something drastic or spectacular
to get our attention. We are so busy running here and there we only stop long enough to say a
quick prayer and go through a list of God blesses. So when God has something important
to tell us, He must resort to a proverbial burning bush.

One day,while watching his father-in-law's sheep, Moses saw a bush that was burning but was not
being consumed. God called to him from the bush and told him not to come any closer until he
took off his shoes. Approaching the throne of God should not be taken lightly but with
reverence. God told Moses that He is now ready to bring the Israelites out of Egypt and he
wanted Moses to go to Pharaoh. Moses in turn says, "Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh,
and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt." Forty years earlier he was
ready to deliver them single-handedly. Now he feels completely unworthy. He is now qualified
for the job. Paul said, "God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things
which are mighty." God can only use us when we are totally dependant on Him for our strength.
He told Moses that He would be with him. Moses asked Him for a name and He said to tell the
children of Israel that I AM had sent him to deliver them. God cannot be described in
human terms. He simply IS!

God gave Moses a plan to follow in bringing His people out of Bondage. He never leaves us on
our own. We always have His word to guide us through whatever difficulty we may be facing.
He told Moses what to say to the people and what to say to Pharaoh. He warned him that the
King of Egypt would not let them go but that He would take care of that. If we do what we are
supposed to, He will take care of the rest. He then told Moses that the people were to
borrow jewels and clothing from the Egyptians before they left. This was not stealing,
they were just collecting back wages! No matter how much affliction the Christian must endure
now, there will be a payday someday!

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Why do you think God waited so long to bring the Israelites out of Egypt?

Who do you think appeared to Moses from the burning bush: an angel, God, or Jesus?

Thank you so much for doing the
Bible Study with us this week.
I hope you enjoyed your visit.